LCDC: Voters should OK loans

The disturbing part about the issues behind the recall effort is not the haggle over McEuen Field or city salaries or questionable projects that raise taxes. Nor is it the growing bitterness or the low level mudslinging or the flagrant media bias. No!

What is disturbing and alarming is the fact that our urban renewal agency, fondly known as LCDC, has to borrow money for the McEuen re-do. That’s right; borrow! And we all thought LCDC was flush with tax money. Instead they must go to Washington Trust Bank to secure a 10-year, $16.7 million loan. Even if this is paid off before 2021, the interest is likely to be in the millions.

Ever since 1997 we commoners have been held awestruck by the LCDC’s use of a magical and mysterious device called tax increment financing. TIF means loosely that LCDC gets the tax money on the difference between the base value and the increased value of properties in the urban renewal districts until they terminate (2021 or 2027).

If this isn’t clear, what is clear is that last year LCDC collected a cool $5.7 million in cash. In just three short years that money could cover the total for McEuen Phase 1. Why can’t we simply pay as we go like responsible people and not waste millions in interest and origination fees? This would be good magic and not smothered by smoke and mirrors.

Given the present financial climate both nationally and locally, the practice of using LCDC to pay for projects not approved by the voters is highly irresponsible and smacks of carelessness, or worse, corruption on the part of our city officials. Those are the only reasons I can see for rushing into debt to refurbish an otherwise serviceable park that has been intentionally neglected for the last 20 years.

JIM JACKSON

Coeur d’Alene